Please Don't Tell
by SimplyAdorabubble
Summary: Noah's early elimination from Total Drama Island has earned him a long, two month stay in Playa Des Losers while he waits for the rest of the competition to end; something that he is far from looking foward to. Little does he know the sort of things that can happen if he (god forbid) reaches out to others. Maybe this stay won't be such a bad thing...
1. 1 - Playa Des Losers

_P.O.V: NOAH_

Yeah, I was pretty shocked to be the third contestant to be kicked off of Total Drama Island. I can't say I was necessarily upset with the situation I was put into once I lost, though. The resort was easily the best part. The people, however, easily ruined what could've been a good time.

The disgusting Homeschool Ezekiel and Miss Iron Woman Eva.

...And then _I_ arrived as a loser with my impressive 20th place.

Ezekiel was there as soon as I came off of the boat, full of conversation that I didn't want to have. That kid... I can hardly believe he's an actual, living thing. I've never met anyone so _pathetic._ "Oh, you're gonna love it here! There's a pool and a hot tub... And food for days, homie! Full buffet!"

My gaze was narrow and drilled right through his skull. "Because _that's_ appealing compared to one hundred thousand bucks."

"Ah, c'mon... I know it ain't fun to get kicked off, but there's gonna be more people every few days. It'll liven up!"

I shot him a look that I could only hope displayed even a third of my distaste for the fact that he was still speaking to me. Obviously, he didn't get the memo. He never did, by the way. I'm sure he thought we were closer than [insert shitty redneck analogy here], but the sound of his voice literally made me uncomfortable.

Bags in hand I made my way up to the resort and I was actually pretty content when I found that what he was telling me had been true. See, when someone who had likely never seen a city before says the words 'There's a pool and a hot tub,' it's easy for me to picture two mud pits in the ground—one in the sun and the other in the shade. But, no. Two cement foundations, actual chlorinated water... I was impressed.

"I spend most of my time in the game room. Eva's usually in the gym, so usually if you stay away from her, she's fine." He was trying way too hard to be my friend. How desperate do you have to be to look to _me_ for a friend? Answer: very.

"All the more reason to avoid the gym," I shot back, hoping to stop any sort of conversation that he might have found necessary. "Where do I put my things?"

"Oh yeah! There are a bunch of real nice rooms upstairs in the resort. Yeah, we get out of the compe-tish first, but at least we get first pick at the resort rooms, eh?"

I rolled my eyes. "Whatevs, just show me there. I want to be _alone_." He nodded to me far too over-zealously and opened his mouth to speak again... And that's when I decided to tune him out.

While he blabbered on about what was likely to be the least interesting thing I've ever heard, I took in the sights of what I would call home for about two months. It was gorgeous, I'll admit. This is the resort that was on that stupid brochure Chris sent to the contestants months ago. Turns out I can't be as mad at Chris as I initially thought. It was like three fourths of a lie... I mean, I only spent nine days on that stupid island, but that was easily nine days too many.

There were the pools and buffet, of course, along with plenty of rooms inside that seemed strictly for entertainment purposes. He opened one of the bedroom doors (which I only assumed was his) and it was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen... Well, maybe that's only because the previous living scenario was not something you could call 'desirable.'

My hopes were finally starting to turn more positive. Like, okay, maybe I _won't_ fake an injury to go home early. Just ignore everyone who drops in, go through the books I brought (which were plentiful), and maybe this won't be an awful situation.

There was a muffled buzzing that distracted me from my thoughts. What was that _noise?_

...Oh my god, is Ezekiel still going _on_?

"And then there's always been my sister. Oh, she's great. I think you'd like her! I mean, I know I don't know you all that well, but she's just one of those people, ya kno-...?"

"Well this has been nice, Homeschool, but I'm turning in for the night. It's kind of been a long day."

He grinned wide in a way that really irritated. His existence was just too much for me. I wish I could explain my hatred for this kid in more detail... Hopefully I'm doing even a _decent_ job at it. "Oh yeah, sure!" he chirped. "I'm just right down the hall if you need me, eh?"

"Yeah, night."

I was already in the door, closing it on him. I wasn't even _trying_ to be a good person. I really _do not like Ezekiel._

The silence slowly faded around me as the kid started mumbling to himself until he was finally out of earshot. I rubbed my temples for relief, grunting as I threw my bag onto the bed. I was going to sleep well tonight, Ezekiel just assured that. What can I say? Social situations wear me out fast than the average human.

Everything in the room was soft and an obnoxiously bright white. You know the kind. There's realistic white that will always look sort of faded, but then there's this sort of fluorescent white that looks like it's purposely trying to blind you. Like a computer screen. Probably the background of this page is a good example (that's right, screw the fourth wall). I guess that's just classic hotel quality white, though. Maybe I should have said that first.

I liked it. It was comfortable, it was cozy, and it was all mine. I didn't have to share with a group of guys that bickered and farted until I had to leave, gasping for air with a headache that left me practically sleepless. I was going to lay down, close my eyes, and the next day would be here.

God, just the sound of that made me smile like an idiot to myself.

I fell back onto my bed. Who cared about changing at this point? I was blissfully in my own little world.

...A bliss that my own stupid, negative thoughts were quick to steal me from.

Hey, genius. You're going to have to deal with more people you can't stand soon. One loudmouth is easy to tune out, and Eva doesn't yell unless you provoke her. You know that _you_ aren't stupid enough to piss her off—not that you can speak for Ezekiel. But eventually, there are going to be 15+ people yelling and being obnoxious... God, if you have to hear either Katie or Sadie's voices again, you'll likely throw yourself off of the roof of this place.

I rolled over onto the softest pillow I've ever laid on in my life, groaning into it like some sort of ten-year-old teenage girl who just got her allowance revoked. I know, that's a cute sight.

The worst part is that I had absolutely no way to know who's coming next. I could get someone actually sensible and sane like Trent, or a bottle-blonde ditz who can't even remember her own name.

...Okay, c'mon Noah. Let's not cut this off from having even a _little_ hope. Just sleep it off.

Maybe something would surprise me.

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for the read! Just a short intro for what's to come that I was perhaps a _bit_ over inspired to write. It was about 4-6am when I wrote this, so I can only hope I won't hate it when I read it later. I would appreciate a follow! Much love~**

 **~FB**


	2. 2 - Fresh Meat

P.O.V: NOAH (3 Days Later)

 _Knock knock knock._

"You up, Noah?"

My eyes shot up to the door. Three days of this idiot breathing down my neck, torturing me with his existence at any opportunity that he could manage to steal from my day. I mean yesterday, the kid went on a thirty minute rant about the differences and health advantages between milks from different animals. The fact that I was still alive on my own choice was a miracle. That week, God gave me strength. Bless.

"If you don't back off from my door in the next ten seconds, I _will_ call the she-Hulk on you," I hissed, though I knew it was all for nothing. He was ignorantly stupid in the worst kind of way.

"Aw c'mon, eh! The boat's gonna drop someone soon!"

"Why do you keep assuming that I care about anything you have to say?"

His obnoxious laugh cut through my head like a bullet of... Some analogy I couldn't think of because of the reasoning behind this nonexistent analogy. "Noah, you're a funny guy! That's why I like you."

I groaned and got to my feet then, tossing my book aside. What the hell else was I going to do? I wasn't tired yet and I needed a walk to try and escape his attention. Odds are, he'd find a new friend in whoever got off the boat. Maybe if I was lucky, someone like Harold would get off and I would be home free. Unfortunately, I was never known for that sort of good lucky, so that was entirely out of the question.

I opened the door and the idiot was elated to see my face, sort of like an obnoxiously happy puppy that just won't go to bed, even though it's 2am and you're begging it to. Lucky for me, before he could manage a word in, the boat horn echoed through the resort.

"Fresh meat." Eva's voice startled me. She was starting down the hall and pushed Ezekiel out of the way once she approached him, which was easily a highlight to my night. "I'm gonna take a look."

"Right... You two have fun with that." A last ditch effort to try and escape.

" _Noah._ " Her voice turned sharp and startled me. " _Come on._ "

I turned on my heel and rushed to her side. Look, I wasn't afraid or anything... It's just that it only took about half a day to realize that Eva was definitely the better of two worlds when it came to anything that resembled friendship around here. Sure, she was a load of anger, ready to burst at any moment, but at least she was capable of normal (and sometimes intelligent) conversation.

I felt awkward walking alongside her. I had to spark some sort of conversation—the only downside when it came to talking to her. She was hard to find common ground with, especially for me. "Alright... So who do you think it is?"

"Don't know, don't care," she said simply. "Practically anyone would make sense. _I_ was the only well-rounded competitor on that show. The rest are just incompetent, weak, losers.'

I laughed at that. "Excuse me? Then what really are you? I mean you got here _second_ , that's impressively bad." I could feel her nasty glare blindside the right of my face. I took a slight step to the left to put some space between us as we walked down the hall.

"You _know_ what happened!" she snapped, her feet stomping hard into the ground with every step. When she approached the door, she threw it as hard as she could into the wall behind it with a snap coming from the hinges. Okay.. Yeah, I could've (and should've) avoided this.

"It's all _their_ fault! My team ruined my chances because they're a bunch of back-stabbing, no-good, evil pieces of—... Beautiful, strong man..."

I gave her a look that I only could've hoped made her feel as stupid as she sounded... Had she actually been looking at me. "The hell has you so airy mid-rant about your ' _satanically-spawned team_ ' of all people?"

"What?..."

That was a bad sign.

She stared dreamily off into the distance, even when I stepped in the way of her focused gaze. I was more scared of her then I'd ever been of her before, even when she was screaming and spitting in Ezekiel's face (and oh, what a sight that was). She completely just blanked on people that she had a death wish for.

I turned then, glancing at the boat. "Okay... Cool... Yeah, that's a boat, world firs—..." She grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head to the side a bit.

..Okay, now that definitely made more sense. Helloooo, Justin.

Before you get onto me all silently judgmental, of course I was swooning over him. His looks alone are more than enough to break through my wall of did-he-actually-mean-it brand sarcasm and unmentionable superiority complex, and that's saying something coming from me. I'm not often swayed by other people's' looks. ...Or at least before I saw him. So yeah, it was kind of a big deal to me.

"Worse people could've gotten off of that boat," Eva commented, shaking her head out of the trance that came with Justin's presence.

Ezekiel's voice came from behind us. "I'm gonna go tell him hi!"

Before he could get past us, Eva had him from the back of his sweatshirt. "Don't you dare bother him. He doesn't deserve that."

"Well _someone_ should show him to the rooms," I insisted, Ezekiel still struggling to get out of Eva's death-grip.

It was when I looked over those two that I noticed how truly incompetent they were to talk to someone like Justin. I was the only capable one, gifted with the brain and mediocre social skills the both of them severely lacked. Before either one of them could argue, I stepped down the stairs down to the dock—closer to Justin and farther from the fistfight that was guaranteed to break out.

Alright, now I just needed to not make a huge idiot out of myself. Eh. Easier said than done.

I kept my eyes straight down to the ground as I approached him. Maybe if I could keep from staring at him, I could say something sensible.

"Noah? Mind telling me where we are?" Okay, so his voice put me back a few steps. I wasn't prepared for the whole 'communication' thing. Besides, how could voices be attractive? It seemed impossible.

I was at his side then. I gestured him to follow me with a wave of the hand, still refusing to look at him, which in hindsight, probably made me seem like one hell of a jackass. Live and learn. "It's where we're staying," I said simply. I tried to keep all my responses short and sweet. "It's nice. Actually, we think it's the resort Chris tricked us to coming to in the first place."

"We?"

"Eva and Ezekiel."

"...Who?"

I laughed at that, though pretty confused as to how he decided to remember my name over theirs. If anything, I was far less memorable than a psycho with anger issues and a sexist homeschooler. "They're the only other people here. Trust me, if you decide not to talk to them, you won't be missing much." I glanced over at him then, quickly retracting once I noticed he was looking at me. I was doing too well to screw myself over then.

"This place is really nice," he commented. He sounded pretty amused, probably at the fact that I was very clearly trying to resist the urges he creates upon existing. "How are the sleeping arrangements?"

The left side of my body literally felt warmer. He radiates good looks to the highest form of literacy. "It's kind of perfect, actually." My voice got higher pitched, as it only usually does when I'm either trying to schmooze someone or I'm daydreaming and/or fantasizing. "Living standards good enough for royalty. Who knew Chris would go for this expense?"

He laughed at that, though I didn't think I was being funny. I could only assume he was making fun of me, so I wiped the smile off my face instantly. "Well I'm not royalty, but I definitely deserve those sort of accommodations. Beauty like mine only comes along once in a lifetime."

Okay, I got it. He was the kind of guy who _knows_ he's hot. ..But then again, how could he not?

I decided that then was a good time to steal a look at him... An obviously bad decision. When I glanced up, he was already looking straight back at me (a critical hit indeed). His gorgeous eyes locked me into place and completely wiped any sort of logical thoughts out of my head. Did normal people deal with this? I didn't want to find people attractive anymore! Let me be arrogantly bitter!

We got to the front door and I was still unfortunately under his spell. "Here." He reached for the door and opened it for me, gesturing inside. "After you."

I eyed him suspiciously. "Eh... Okay, thanks..."

"Why so skeptical?"

"Have you _met_ me?"

He was laughing again. God, what was so funny? Under normal circumstances and I had been in my own head, I could easily understand what had him so giggly. I'm hysterical. But I wasn't even doing anything!

"I'm trying to be nice here," he insisted as I lead him through the hallways. "I mean, you and I had a few good conversations on the island." I felt kind of guilty at that. We did? I shrunk down a bit. "You told me all about that book you were reading... Lady of Our Flowers, yeah?"

"Our Lady of the Flowers," I corrected him, but I was still genuinely surprised. "I'm... Surprised you cared enough to remember."

So truth is, I still didn't remember actually telling him anything about my book, but I also have a bit of a habit to mindlessly ramble if someone catches me distracted enough (yes, even while reading).

"You went on about it for nearly half an hour." My face flushed a bit. Luckily, my darker complexion was good for hiding my embarrassment. He was looking at me again, so I forced my gaze away from him. "You're really passionate about the books you read."

My train of thought hit five walls, one after the other. "...Wait, was that some sort of compliment?" I glanced up for validation and I got it in the form of a wink.

...Make that six walls.

The rooms came up besides us in the hall and it took the mental strength of a psychiatrist to this day's top pop artist to pull me back into reality. "Eh... You can just... Pick one of these rooms. Just not the ones on the end—those are taken."

Justin put a hand to my shoulder and I flinched. "Thank you for the assistance." God, did he talk to everyone like that? I swear, he was just trying to get under my skin then, into my head. I'm not sure why but... Of course he was trying to mess with my head. That's what guys like him do.

I squinted at him as he headed into the room he had claimed as his own. "Sure... I guess I'll see you around, then."

"I hope so."

The door clicked shut and alone I stood.

"What a _poser_." Eva scared me from my own thoughts. I turned and quickly and saw her, Ezekiel dragging behind her by his collar.

I rolled my eyes. "Says the girl swooning over him not ten minutes ago."

She shrugged, continuing past me and stopping at Ezekiel's door, stopping only to throw him inside and shut the door again. "He's still a poser. Just a disgustingly perfect poser."

* * *

 **A/N: Alright, the last of these introduction chapters! Thanks so much for baring with me here. I have a lot planned for this fanfiction and I'm very very _very_ excited! Thanks for the reviews/favorite/follows! It means a lot~**

 **Thank you to acosta perez jose ramiro for the correction to chapter one! It completely slipped my mind. (I've been watching a lot of season 2 or 3 if that says anything).**

 **Also, thank you to Star Artist for the review! Every one means a lot to me!**

 **Buckle up, because I have a lot in store now!**


	3. 3 - A Lack of Apathy

P.O.V: NOAH (The Next Day)

I slept well that night, surprised to awaken on my accord as opposed to muffled voices outside of my door. It was an odd feeling—not a bad one, don't get me wrong. Just unfamiliar. I glanced at the clock and... 10:30am. I definitely needed that extra sleep. I was hungry, but I could wait until lunch was served.

I threw on a plain shirt and some swim trunks. Without Ezekiel breathing down my neck, maybe I could actually explore the facilities; do something other than self-torture via redneck.

Daily routine aside, I grabbed a towel that was so _graciously_ provided by the resort (thanks Chris) and made my way down the hall. I had recently realized that I was more social in the mornings (not immensely so, but enough where someone could approach me with conversation and I would actually dignify it with a response), but had also picked up on the fact that Eva is not to be disturbed during her morning ritual.

Learn from Homeschool's mistakes.

I opened the back door to the pool portion of the resort. My eyes drifted over the scene and to my avail, I was all by myself. Excellent.

The layout was resemblant of paradise—so much better than the trash pit I expected upon arrival. There was the pool and a hot tub, and in the shallow end of the pool, there were small stools to sit at a submerged bar, which actually just a shaded table in the water. There are children here! What's alcohol?

But I was about to make it my base of operations.

I waded in like a little bitch who can't stand a tiny bit of cold water, (spoiler: it's because that's exactly what I am) and made my perch on one of the cushions, book in hand.

The peaceful atmosphere was to die for. You know that ringing in the back of your head that you can only hear when your ears aren't picking up any sound—the literal sound of nothing? I live for that noise 95% of the time.

...But that wasn't one of those times. Go figure that the one time I _actually manage_ solitude on this stupid game show, I didn't want it. I shrugged to myself. I'd force Eva to talk to me once she made her way outside. She liked to do laps around the pool after her lifting workout.

I heard the creak of a door behind me and couldn't help but perk up. "Perfect timing," I crooned, closing my book. "I was waiting for you to get here."

"Were you really?"

...Wait. No, that definitely not the voice of a female bodybuilder who likely has some sort larynx injury. I turned quickly, and to validate my suspicion, there stood the man I had completely forgotten had arrived last night. Justin had received a boost to his ego and now stood posed just outside of the back door... And _I_ was staring at him like an idiot that lacked self-control. Nice.

I scrambled for the words that just weren't coming to me. "Oh, sorry. Figured Eva was finished being her ridiculous self for the morning. Didn't mean to bother you."

He pouted at me, starting to approach me at the pool. I tried to push a super power out of my eyes to keep him locked in place. Unfortunately, it didn't work. "What, so you're not happy to see me."

"I'd say I'm pretty neutral on the subject." Okay, that was a blatant lie. Keep up the great work.

"Maybe you caught me at a bad angle," he suggested, situating into a new pose on the pool's edge. "This one suit your fancy?'

Yes, it did. I fought a more obvious stare and decided to give him a dry look-over. He didn't need the confidence boost, I mean he look at him... But at that, there was a some sort of shift in his expression that I didn't quite understand. My first instinct was to be sympathetic towards him, but my first _reaction_ was me laughing at him.

I don't have a lot of friends. Have I made that obvious yet?

There was a shift in his stature and expression that made me feel uneasy. It didn't seem very... _Him_ , if that makes any sense.

What, was he _offended_?

Yeah, right. As if the opinion of one nerdy little Indian boy mattered even the slightest to him.

I'd been silent for too long at that point. I instantly did what I did best: tried to push him away so that I could return to solitude. "Look, I'm just trying to finish this book without any distractions." I flashed him the cover of the book that I had supposedly told him all about a week or so ago.

He shrugged, looking a lot less enthusiastic than how he had started that conversation. "I'm sorry to be the barer of bad news, but it turns out that you're going to have some problems, because I don't plan on leaving anytime soon." A half-decent attempt to keep insisting his self-love onto others with a cherry on top that was the smile he sent along with it.

"Easy on the self-flattery," I grumbled, flipping through the pages of my book passive-aggressively until I found where I had last read. "There's vanity and then there's narcissism. One is far more tolerable than the other, but don't get either of them mistaken for a healthy dosage of confidence, because I can personally assure you that they're not."

He looked at me and blinked a few times.

...Okay, so maybe I overdid it, but in my defense, the last few days had put me in a more hostile mood than usual, especially towards disgustingly attractive strangers for some reason. I completely expected him to snap at me; to look at me and complain at me, all while expertly tossing in reminders of his own beautiful existence to keep his ego high and mighty (like it was some sort of art he had perfected).

But what he actually did surprised me. With a look that showed nothing but his own defeat, Justin turned and went off from the water's edge and back towards a row of chairs.

I blinked. Yes, I was a snarky asshole 95% of the time, but most of my banter was just assumed by those who listened to not be taken seriously—unless my voice raised raised, I never _should be_! Sarcastic is my default, though I sincerely doubt that needed to be pointed out.

But, I had offended him—someone with a vibe that seemed to be impenetrable by the words of a quippy boy he didn't know.

I put my book down. ...I felt angry.

...Was that even the right word?

This guy had been offended at something that I had rudely told to his face and I was feeling mad at him!... Was that even the right phrasing; the right _word_? I felt angry- _ish_... And also an odd combination of that and sick to my stomach... And something else that I didn't know how to word.

...Then it hit me.

Oh dear God, call the news channel: Noah Sterecra felt guilty.

I tilted my head back into what was probably one of the most immature groans that I'd ever managed before. When I noticed that it had captured Justin's attention, I turned back to the table top to avoid eye contact.

Empathy. _What the hell_ , nobody told me I had that shit. I needed to speak to life's manager immediately about that.

...Would that be God?

Unimportant, Noah. I needed to learn to stop getting tangled up in the details of my hypothetical situations I created in my internal monologue. It was beginning to be a major problem.

I gave the situation a few moments before I decided to address it. I glanced over my shoulder as casually as I could manage, and to my rare good fortune, he was laying down in a chair with his eyes closed.

Time to get my thoughts in order.

First things first, Justin was different than I thought he would be. He seemed decent enough to have (and recall) conversation. ...Though he did have one hell of a superiority complex—but then again, who was I to judge anyone on that topic? _And_ apparently he was sensitive to what I had to say, which was completely the opposite of what I _expected_ of him. I expected something closer to how Heather acted. Something like "I don't give a flying f**k what you think about me, I'm the shit." I've been wrong before.

I was thrown for one hell of a loop. Another peak up at him validation his emotion. There was just this nearly tangible force-field of "Don't come near me" that I'd never felt (but always expected) from him.

God, I was so _guilty_. I needed a distraction.

"Move it, twerp!"

Hello, distraction. At last.

I suppose it made sense that when a mean, bitter person like me asked a godly figure for a favor that something more satanic would arrive, in the form of his daughter. With the audible sound of someone's face against the poolside pavement, Eva and her little whipping boy were on the scene.

"And the iron woman makes her grand entrance," I commented with my usual level of monotone and apathy, loud and proud for all to hear.

"Quiet, string-bean," she snapped back. "I need to finish my cardio."

I rolled my eyes. "Like you need it."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

I threw up my hands defensively, as if they could actually protect me if she decided that she wanted to start throwing punches. "I just don't get why you have to do the same routine _every single day_. You're already buff, we get it. Leave some motivation for the rest of us, you know?"

She looked at me, completely unamused at that, along with most other things in her life that she was forced to deal with. "Unlike _most people_ , I actually _like_ the feeling of being warn out after a long workout. It's actually fulfilling compared to going to bed, thinking of all the text messages I'd sent while sitting on my ass all day!"

"It was just a comment," I grumbled, rolling my eyes at her. "No need to get so overkill about it."

A sarcastic laugh took me off guard. It only took me a moment to notice that it was Justin from his spot across the way. There was a pang of guilt that slammed me in the chest. God, why did I _care_!?

...It probably had something to do with the deflated look in his eyes when it had happened. That might just do it.

Eva turned on her heel and started in her ritual of running aimlessly around the pool. Now, I can see how someone who's just seeing this situation and these people for the first time would get confused as to how I could even consider someone like her my _friend_ , I totally do. She liked me!...

Eva really _is_ just... Subtle.

If someone like Ezekiel had been the one sitting in my place, she wouldn't have spoken a word and her headphones would've been jammed into her ears, music blasting. Both of those things weren't true in my case.

See? Friendship, probably.

Okay, and I know that's a pretty bad example seeing as how impossible he is to even tolerate, but that's just the first person that came to mind. Even Justin trying would get the same result—which reminded me that I desperately needed him off of my mind.

"You know, you could use a good regiment." I looked up to catch Eva running just from my view. "You need it."

Ouch. No, that isn't what I needed right about then for both my previous argument _or_ self confidence. Eh, maybe she didn't mean it all that badly. I mean, she'd say that to just about anyone who wasn't ripped with an unnecessary 24-pack.

"Not my forte," I replied simply—an easy go-to response for just about anything you could possibly not want to deal with.

"I doesn't take much to just _get off of your ass_ for a few minutes every day."

I glared at her. I had a medical condition; most athletic things truly were off the table—but of course I didn't expect her to know that. I opened my mouth to rebuttal but another voice beat me to the punch.

"Don't talk to him like that." Justin's voice was airy, but harsh in a way that sent a chill through my bloodstream. His voice was always that way, but never would I have described it as intimidating before then. Either way, it had taken Eva just as off guard as it had me.

"Mind your own damn business," she snarled into a warning growl. "Eavesdropping really gets under my skin."

Justin was sitting up now, sunglasses pushed to perch on the top of his head. "And you picking on someone who doesn't deserve it gets under _mine_."

Maybe it was the attraction that came with a strong, beautiful man being forceful with her, but her mouth was shut. She jogged along, digging through her pockets until she dug out her MP3 in motion. "Whatever," she hissed, her eyes refusing anywhere in either of our directions.

I didn't know what to think. My eyes shifted back and forth from the book in my hands to who sat across the way. My eyes laid blankly on him, but after a moment of prolonged eye contact (god I hate unnecessary eye contact), he softly smiled at me before returning to his comfortable tanning spot with sunglasses over his face.

...I didn't _understand_ this guy!

The guilt practically buried me in a disgusting pile that I was forced to deal with by then. I had pegged Justin all sorts of wrong. He was... Nicer than I would have ever expected... And god forbid, at times _selfless_.

Maybe I was just overthinking things—I know, world first.

Another external groan forced upon the outside world and I shoved my nose back into my book. I was better at judging people in books... It was all written out for me, none of this judgment-call assumption bullshit. Being social was hard.

* * *

 **A/N: These beginning chapters are hard to get out due to lack of people. I'll likely put more time between each of them to help with story progression. Thank you for those who review/fav/follow! It makes me very very happy and I really do hope that you're enjoying it!**

 **~I do one-shot requests~**


	4. 4 - Convincing Smiles

P.O.V: NOAH (Two Days Later)

The walls of the resort practically shook at the bass-filled tone of the boat horn. I had turned in early that night and the fact that it had been three nights since Justin's arrival had completely flown over my head—there was someone new to the resort that night.

On my feet then, I slipped the door open to peak out into the hallway. I heard footsteps to the right, only to see Eva heading back down to the gym. I slipped out and down the hallway in the opposite direction.

I'd been very content the last two days. For one reason or another, Ezekiel had completely decided to leave me the hell alone.

...Okay, I'm not going to give him that much credit. Most of my solitude had to myself to blame—I had practically barricaded myself in my room to recharge my social energies. What can I say? Talking to people seriously wore me out. Still, it threw me off that he didn't even _try_ to make contact with me. God, I'm a walking contradiction.

Maybe it was 10pm, but I needed out, and the boat's arrival was the perfect excuse.

The open door allowed a humid breeze inside as I walked on the front deck. The night air was thick and uncomfortable, but there was the softest of breezes that made the entire atmosphere nearly enjoyable. You could smell the fresh lake water and the chlorine from the pool (which is basically like inhaling relaxation).  
...These are all things I _would_ have noticed if this wasn't what had been piercing my poor, poor eardrums.

"Take me back! What am I supposed to do without Sadie!? I'm like, _totally_ gonna die!"

Oh _God_ , let this be some sort of sick joke. I squinted down at the boat. There was a large figure stomping across the dock, something (someone) much smaller thrown over their shoulder. "Why don't 'cha shut up!? I don't get paid enough to be totin' around some whiny teenager."

"Take me _back_! O-Or bring her here! Chef, I can't live without he-"

"I don't care!"

The destructive shrieks came back with a vengeance and my hands flew up to my ears in an attempt to protect my oh-so-precious eardrums. God, why _Katie_? There were seldom things that I had a bigger distaste for than obnoxiously loud teenagers—especially teenage _girls_. I planned to stay as far away from her as I could, that was a given.

With the loud thump of skin against old wood, the smaller figure of Katie was now lying at the end of the dock, close to the steps that led up the front door of the resort **.** With a few inaudible, and likely very bitter, grumbles from Chef, he was off on the path around the resort to the back.

I expected her to get back on her feet and get distracted by how "fabulous" this place was (though thinking back on it, fabulous seemed more Lindsay's thing than anything else), but it didn't happen. She laid there in a big bundle of loud, annoying grief, crying to the point that plugging my ears was completely useless.

I propped my head on my hands, elbows on some splintery wood from the railing that came up from the stairs to the front door. It was quite the spectacle. ...But it got old ridiculously quick. Was she going to stay here all _night_? Just crying pathetically because her _BFF_ was _MIA_?

My blood ran cold. Oh dear God, what if Eva heard her? I glanced nervously over my shoulder towards the front door. There aren't words to describe the fear that I felt in that moment. She would take 100% of her anger out on me if she couldn't sleep, just because Ezekiel practically ran from her at this point—I was the only one who interacted with her.

I didn't want that for myself. No way in hell.

Obviously, I didn't have the social patience to coax her to a room, and I wasn't _near_ strong enough to pick her up and _carry_ her there. I was far from the person that should've been dealing with this fiasco. Options: I sit there and plan my own funeral, or maybe... Maybe I could get some help. Would Ezekiel help me out if I managed to track down where he was likely hiding from Eva?... I glanced at Katie again. No, that wouldn't work. We were two pathetically weak boys—don't tell Eva I admitted that.

What else could I do?

...Oh. Oh yeah. How did I keep _forgetting_ about that one? (Actually I had a theory but it wasn't one I wanted to admit). Justin had to be _plenty_ strong enough to carry a girl that tiny. He was a real man, unlike those like myself and Ezekiel.

I started back inside and into the empty hallway, eyes skeptical on the door that was approaching quickly to my right. Justin's room had been right across from mine; the only reason I knew where he was. It was conveniently close.

I stood outside for probably an inappropriate amount of time, just staring up at the big "4" on the door. I didn't even know if he would even be awake. Pretty people liked their beauty sleep or whatever (I read that in a book once). If I woke him up, he'd probably get pissed and deny to help me, and I could not _deal_ with that girl so close to my window all night—I could only assume all night because it'd already been ten minutes or so and she was still bawling.

"Can I help you?"

Yeah, that figured.

I turned around like I was in a sleazy horror film, glaring in an upward direction over my shoulder with accidentally terrified eyes. "Heeyyy, Justin." My voice went up an octave. That's right, I activated schmoozer mode.

He had an eyebrow raised at me, smirking for some reason that I couldn't detect. "Any reason you're snooping outside my room?" Before I could answer. "Did you just miss me?'

" _Snooping_?" My voice cracked and I noticed his smile increase a bit at that. I kept my head high, or at least tried my best to. "What, I can't walk down a hall without judgment?'

"I was right behind you for about a minute or so..." Damn, he was quiet. I shuffled awkwardly on my own feet as he continued. "Did you need me or something?"  
I blanked. I mean, of course I _must have_ needed something. Think and think hard before your losing streak of social interactions presses on. My posture straightened at the success of finding my lost thought. "Oh! Okay, so I have a problem and I was sort of wondering if you could help me out."

"I'm a busy man, Noah," he said in that whimsical tone of his. I couldn't tell if he was passive-aggressively angry at me or if that was just that razor blade behind his voice that dug into every word he spoke. "What's my time worth to you?"

This was a test, wasn't I? It was some sort of riddle in my quest for The Disposal of An Annoying Girl, which was a quest I was determined to complete. My life practically depended on it. I forced a big, false smile as I incisively picked through my thoughts for any sort of reason that he might find acceptable. But, before I could actually _say_ anything, he shrugged and reached for the doorknob that I moved out of the way of. "You've convinced me," he said simply, slipping inside.

He left me perplexed and the door wide open. I only assumed that it meant for me to come in after him, which I did so cautiously. His room was very well put together and clean—exactly what I would expect to see. Only an item or two seemed out of place, and my memory took note of that for one reason or another—that reason _probably_ being that my memory is nearly photographic and it's not like I had a choice on whether I wanted to retain that information or not.

I watched as he dug through one his bags for a shirt that he slipped over his head. I blinked, embarrassed for a moment. He was probably expecting me to speak, huh? "So _anyway_..." Smooth recovery. "I have a problem involving a girl."

"Not exactly my strong-suit, but I guess I can help."

I blinked. Holy hell, I was awful at speaking. "O-Oh my god, _no no no no no_. That's not what I meant... I just mean that Katie's outside and she won't shut _up_. She's crying and if she keeps crying, that's going to result in my demise via bodybuilder." He looked at me with a wordless expression and I sighed. "Katie just got here and she won't stop crying because Sadie's not here... Eva's going to _lose it_ if she doesn't get peace and quiet at night, and I'm going to take full force of that for at _least_ three days."

"So you want me to... Make her be quiet?"

It took me off guard for a moment. Did he not _hear her_? She was audible right where we were standing and he seemed oblivious to it all.

"No... Maybe just throw her in a room up here... I'm not strong, I can't pick her up, and she wasn't hearing a word that Chef had to say, so convincing her to move seems pretty hopeless."

"Say no more," he cut me off, leading me out of his room and down the hall. I stayed behind him and out of his view, and every time he attempted to get me to be side by side with him, I slowed down just a bit more. I don't know what about him intimidated me to do such a thing, but there I was... Looking like an idiot who can't walk at a consistent pace down a hallway.

Once he pulled the front door open for me, I passed him up, gesturing over the top railing down at the source of some ridiculous, shrill sound waves. " _See_? Eva's room is right there." I turned to a nearby window. "And also means that my grave will be right about there." I promptly pointed to the flower bed below it before glancing over my shoulder and back at him, trying to contain my legitimate worry but failing.

"Well we can't have _that_ ," he assured me, voice laced with something that was almost... Teasing me?

God every time he spoke, it completely scrambled my thought process. It was so _irritating_ that he was so hard to understand! I glared at his back as he started down the walkway, leaning down and picking Katie up in a swift movement that resulted in a startled squeak.

"Um, oh my god don't touch me...?" You could literally watch the competence drain from her eyes as she realized who was holding her. Justin had that effect on people. "Oh my go-.. So, I've like, _got_ to be dreaming... Justin!?"

What happened next completely threw me. I'm so glad that I had the chance to witness it first hand. His pace was fast and I had a very firm feeling that he didn't want to deal with Katie any more than I did. "Yes, it's me, the beautiful angel of death! I'm so glad you made it!" he cooed, big, convincing eyes and large smile down at her.

Walking alongside them, I watched as Katie's eyes filled with a combination of confusion, fear, and a bit of apathy that I could only assume was caused by the mindset of 'F**k it, Justin's here!' "Wait... I'm... _Dead_?"

I had to hold back a bout of laughter. No way she was that gullible.

"Yes," he continued, voice as convincing as ever. "Of a broken heart. And yet, my incredible beauty has revived you—you can thank me later." With his impressive pace, we were already at an empty room down the hall; furthest from Eva's room. Katie seemed mortified as I opened the door for them. He walked in and placed her on the bed. "Go to bed. The... Other one," I couldn't help but laugh at his choice of words, "should be here in three days."

Head held high, he swept out of the room and shut the door lightly behind him. I looked up at him with a smiling expression of disbelief, on his heels as he went down the hall.

I liked this one. Whether he wanted it or not, he just found himself a new friend.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you so much for your support with reviews/favorites/follows. Special shoutout to LinkBetweenWorlds for the sheer enthusiasm, I adore you that review meant a lot 3. Also thank you to acosta perez jose ramiro for the consistent reads. It really means a lot!**

 **I hope to be putting out a chapter at least once a week! Thank you so so much.**

 **I also hope you really enjoy this interpretation of Justin (you'll be seeing a lot of him)!**

 **-Ruby**


	5. 5 - Auditory Complications

P.O.V: NOAH (3 Days Later)

The next few days were... Uneventful.

I thought that the other night had been a turning point of my boredom and a chance to actually attempt the concept of friendship on Justin, but there was a problem in the form of a 100 pound teenage girl.

Katie would _not_ leave Justin alone for more than how long it took for either of them to go to the bathroom, and it was easily one of the most annoying things that I have ever dealt with. She squeaked and fawned over him as he did the simplest things: eating, walking, or just _sitting there_.

The sound of her squealing was going to make me homicidal if she kept it up for much longer.

I flipped a page in a book I was only half paying attention to. I found myself wanting to lock myself in my room more and more every day, likely to do with the amount of annoyances (annoyances being an obvious synonym for _people_ ) increasing so rapidly. They were hard to avoid/ignore.

 _Thump, thump, thump, thump._

...My point exactly.

Justin often locked himself in his room when he had taken more than his daily dose of Katie, leaving her to wander back to _her_ room where she thought that cranking the volume on her stereo (an old atrocious box that she'd _apparently_ brought from home) to full blast.

That girl listens to the most _cringe worthy_ and _ear-piercing_ 80's and 90's glam pop, I could hang myself just thinking about it.

But that wasn't the worst part about all of this! Oh no! Because _that_ would've been too easy! I could've actually been _content_ for a night—God forbid.

For whatever reason, the boat had made it's round two days early. The night just after Katie's unfortunate arrival, it came again with another face I could've lived to see without. Tyler was on the resort for being afraid of some harmless birds and had been for the last two days. Seeing his face was even _more_ disheartening as it already would've been, since I had been praying so obsessively on the hope that Sadie would show up to distract Katie.

Look, I really wanted a friend here. Yes, maybe I already had Eva, but we had absolutely nothing in common. From the looks of things, Justin and I at least shared a sense of humor—something that I'd never shared with _anyone_ before... Probably because my humor was generally at the expense of others and people didn't tend to like it

I suppose that's with reason.

Someone as self-obsessed as Justin likely didn't have much sympathy for others. That was a plus for my theory. We could be spiteful of the human race together.

I could only dwell in my thoughts for a few moments before the pounding of low-quality bass got to me. I had to put an end to it.

By getting Eva like a pissbaby.

Marching to her room and treading carefully with my words, I managed her to come down to Katie's room.

...Let it be known that the free anger management classes that they provided here were _not_ working.

Before I knew it, Katie's boombox was bye-bye, and I immediately mourned the auditory slamming of a bass-line into my eardrums. It wasn't long before they were replaced with screaming and fighting. I would've _paid_ for someone to come along and knock me unconscious at the point where Eva, Katie, _and_ Tyler were all arguing at clear clarity to me.

But since that wasn't actually an option, I tried an escapist method. I slipped out of my room and down the hallway in the opposite direction than I usually went—their room was in the way to the pool and sweet, sweet escape. So, I'd have to walk around the entire building to get there by going out the front.

"Wait a second!"

A harsh whisper of a voice took me off guard and suddenly I was going twice the speed I initially once, led forward by my wrist as I was swept out the front door.

I blinked and glanced up as fresh air and sunset hit my face, only to see pair of bright blue eyes looking gleefully down at me. "I had to get out of there without Katie noticing I left," Justin informed me. "Sorry for startling you, Tiny King."

Tiny King? I gave him a confused expression but didn't question it much. Maybe it was just a branch of his humor. I could understand under-appreciated humor.

"No uh... Don't worry about it." I looked around for the dock that wrapped around back and started along it; Justin followed close beside me. "Katie driven you bat s**t crazy yet?"

He sighed the most whimsical, airy, yet spiteful sigh I had ever heard in my life. "I'm about to _lose it_. I can't take her for one more second, but we still have a month and a half left here."

"What, you don't love your own personal fan girl?"

" _Lose it_ ," he repeated, this time more intense and over-exaggerated. I laughed, turning the corner to the back deck towards the pool.

I looked up at him and something looked different. Had I ever stood on the right side of him before?... I squinted a bit, and he must have noticed (I wasn't being subtle). He reached up and went for a pose, palm on the back of his neck and grinning at me.

...But when he stopped, the difference wasn't there—like it had vanished from thin air. My eyes trailed to the hand that left him, which was now clenched in a tight fist.

Huh. What was he hiding?

Again, I looked at him as he started going faster towards the pool. ...The difference was his ear.

"Hey Justin?"

"Yes, Tiny King?"

Again with the small royalty. "Do... You wear a hearing aid?"

I watched him straighten up at that, his body fill with tension. It was silent for a moment as I watched him externally as he searched for what I could only peg as an excuse—I was sure of what I saw.

"Well... You see, I-"

But then the back door flew open and familiar arguing emerged, cutting our conversation unfortunately short.

Curiosity seeped through my very pores, but I knew that there was nothing I could say that would be appropriate to ask in front of these people—he obviously wasn't very comfortable with any of them.

I'd have to keep my mouth shut for now.

Well anyway... Long story of relentless arguing short, Ezekiel had a stupid idea to help us get along. He was nearly crying because we were all fighting so much (though we _knew_ it was only Eva who caused problems). Each of us sat with our feet in the hot tub as it churned and bubbled below us, awkwardly looking between each other.

Someone needed to make a move, and I sure as hell wasn't going to do it.

Luckily, Eva gave in and began by making a shrugging motion. Everyone's eyes drifted immediately to her. "Not much to say. I thought it'd be a hell of an easy way to earn $100,000." I was surprised she was the first to speak—I'd mistaken her rough edge for a want to be introverted. I think I was wrong.

"And that mindset got you _so far_."

"Shut it, Noah," she snapped, and I respectfully did so.

Justin rolled his eyes at her and looked at me with a small grin. Maybe he noticed how _great_ her classes were going, too.

I snickered at that, _and_ that the rotation skipped right over Ezekiel. Yeah, how Eva was treating him was pretty cruel, but I didn't want to complain. The peace and quiet I had achieved lately was to _die_ for.

Katie crossed one leg over the other and shrugged. I severely doubted she had much reasoning behind how she ended up here.

"So like, Sadie called me up one day and told me all about how her mom was totally telling her that she should check out this thing. Like apparently there was a chance we could be on TV and all we really had to do was send in a video of us being cute—which wasn't hard. I mean, there wasn't really a _surprise_ that came with the acceptance email, just like 'Oh God FINALLY, I was waiting for this to come in.' Ya know?"

I rolled my eyes. My assumption was correct. I had zero hope that she had _anything_ intelligent to say.

"Me and all my hockey bros sent in videos," Tyler chimed in. "Totally didn't expect to be the one who got in, but I did. Had to drop out of the rest of the season, but it was worth it. I got to meet Lindsay this way."

Whatever. Like they were going to last, anyway. Relationships at this age never work—any couple that started here was likely going to stop as soon as they were sent back home.

I glanced at Katie and the way she stared at Justin made me roll my eyes. I could practically read her thoughts. 'And that's what I'm going to say how _Justin_ and I got together.' Yeah right You're hallucinating.

There was a pause I hadn't noticed immediately, but when I noticed Katie looking down at _me,_ I realized that they were waiting.

"C'mon, eh," Tyler tried to encourage us. "Who's up next?"

The interrogation was sort of intimidating. I wasn't someone who was normally being thrust into the spotlight, so obviously I didn't want it on me for any longer than I needed to. So, I shrugged and said-

"Just needed to get away from everything."

I blinked. That wasn't exactly my voice; I definitely hadn't been the only one who said that. I peered up beside me and Justin was looking back, eyes just as big and taken off guard as mine. Before any apologies for interrupting one another could be said, Eva spoke up.

"Like that's _it_. What, you were stressed from school or something?" Her tone was sharp and demanding—not uncharacteristic of her but I thought it should be noted to add to the intimidation factor. "You're sixteen! There can't be a whole lot to be _'getting away_ ' from."

Well, that's where she was wrong. I had plenty to get away from in my day to day life and although I didn't know Justin at all, I could only assume that it was also true for him. I forced an embarrassment-revealing shade of pink away from my cheeks, scoffing at her without another word. I glanced up at Justin, and he was still looking at me uneasily.

There was an odd exchange at that moment. Something behind the confidence that radiated underneath blue irises trembled at the foundation for a split second—it was a blink or you'll miss it situation, but I sure as hell didn't blink.

He'd been through some tough times. I was sure of it. I only felt nervous that maybe he had felt the same mini-revelation that I had to him. Did he notice some insecurity while looking at me? I sure as hell _hoped_ not. Just thinking as if he did made me feel way too exposed for comfort.

Everyone talked around us for a long while, but we didn't comment anymore than one word at a time or maybe a noise or agreement-maybe a chuckle here or there. Nothing more to actually contribute. I don't know about him, but I was too lost in my own thought to care about what Tyler and Katie had to say.

But, all mediocre things come to an end.

After Ezekiel tried to explain _his_ reasoning, Eva immediately got to her feet and others followed, one by one. Trust me, I was starting to feel bad for the guy, but I knew that when someone like Harold or Cody got voted off, he'd be set. He didn't have to run around like a rejected puppy for too much longer. How late could either of _them_ last?

I sat in my own thoughts for a while. I hadn't really thought about how everything must be at home, and that must have meant that my plan of escape was _working_. I obviously shouldn't dwell on the negative back home—though if I was being honest, that's a hard thing to accomplish.

I glanced up beside me where Justin still sat perched over the edge. I was still curious as to if he saw through me like I did him, but I had a gut feeling that he did.

"Crappy at-home life, too?" I asked casually. I had a brief sense of confidence; might as well not put it to waste (though my 'too' had completely made me feel raw an uneasy again).

He looked surprised at me, but shrugged. "You could say that." He didn't sound sad or pitiful, just like it was a basic fact that he didn't care much about. I could understand a sense of apathy.

"It'll probably shape up soon."

"I'm hoping so."

I didn't know anything about what he was dealing with, but I didn't have to. Sometimes a vague sense of kindness is enough to fill anything that a person needed to hear.

* * *

 **A/N: This took FAR too much time to write, but... Here it is! Another chapter of the fic no one really asked for. I hope to be updating regularly between this and my other Aleheather fic, so Maybe I'll update this once every other week.**

 **Thank you so much for your _very very_ kind reviews, they make me so happy and inspired to write! So remember, Review/Follow/Favorite!**

 **-FP**


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